There is a lot happening in the SEND world at the moment, with some big ‘moving parts’ all occurring at the same time. It creates a challenging time for everyone to try and piece things back together in the best way.
This month we held two events to talk about some of the potential upcoming changes locally and nationally and to hear about what matters to you and your child in light of these potential changes. This article is about what else we are doing and how you can get involved.
Schools White Paper – what we’re doing
The Schools White Paper was published on 23rd February and is the government’s proposals for reforming the school system in England:
This document sets out the proposed SEND reforms:
SEND Reform: Putting Children and Young People First
The consultation on the SEND reforms is now open and runs until 18 May 2026:
And the government has also published a series of short documents setting out key information:
We know many people are feeling understandably frustrated and exhausted about the prospect of taking part in another consultation and about the scope for influencing change. However, we would encourage you to respond; you can choose which questions to respond to and go into as much or as little detail as you want. Everything you submit will be important evidence at later scrutiny stages in Parliament.
While there are some positive aims talked about in the white paper, there are concerns throughout SEND communities that the government’s proposals will weaken the legal rights of children and young people. We’re already approaching the mid-point in the consultation and there is still a lot that we don’t know and concerning and confusing messages about what is actually being consulted on.
Our response to the White Paper will be driven by your feedback, which is why we need to hear from you.
Save the dates!
We are holding two further sessions for parent carers to come and ask questions and chat about the white paper and share your views:
- Tuesday 21st April, 7.00pm to 8.30pm ONLINE via Teams
- Thursday 23rd April, 10.00am to 11.30am ONLINE via Teams
We will share details on our website about how to register very soon.
You may also find it useful to read the handout we produced for our SEND events which is a one-page quick overview of the Schools White Paper.
Schools White Paper – ESPCF events handout (PDF)
Along with our PCF counterparts in Brighton and West Sussex, and the Sussex SEND charity Amaze, we’re writing a letter to all MPs in Sussex to highlight what we’re hearing so far from SEND families.
We are also putting together some questions more specifically about aspects of the proposed reforms to help us hear your thoughts which we will share soon.
SEND charities and organisations are already holding webinars and information sessions, and in some cases the recordings of these will be available afterwards. The sessions may help you understand more about the process and what some of the potential issues are.
The legal implications of the Schools White Paper’s SEND proposals – Special Needs Jungle webinar recording
IPSEA webinar on Schools White Paper – 7pm, Monday 30th March 2026
We will continue to share information to help you understand what the white paper might mean for families. Please keep an eye on our social media pages as this is the most timely way we are able to do this.
Our general feedback form is another option if you prefer to contact us that way to share your views (the form will not collect your contact details unless you choose to provide them).
In the meantime, there is still time to complete our Sussex-wide survey, which we are running as part of our Sussex Parent Carer Forum Collaborative, asking for your initial thoughts about some of the changes happening. The survey closes on Sunday 29th March 2026.
Other consultations
Supporting pupils with medical conditions at school (Special Needs Jungle has a good explainer about this consultation)
16-19 Level 1 English and Maths Qualifications
Keeping children safe in education: 2026 proposed revisions
Local government reorganisation & devolution
In December 2024, the government set out plans to create ‘single-tier’ unitary authorities in places in England where a two-tier system, e.g. a county council and district or borough councils, still operated. East Sussex is one of these places.
Local government reorganisation & devolution – ESPCF event handout (PDF)
At the time of writing this newsletter, decisions about local government reorganisation boundaries have been confirmed in other areas. However, an announcement has just been made by the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government delaying the decision about new council boundaries in Sussex, to allow more time for consideration.
Letter from Secretary of State for Local Government Steve Reed (PDF)
Changes to health systems: ICBs (Integrated Care Boards)
NHS Sussex covers the areas of East Sussex, Brighton & Hove, and West Sussex. From 1st April 2026, NHS Sussex and NHS Surrey Heartlands are merging. They will become NHS Surrey and Sussex.
This is being done to meet national targets of cutting running costs by 50%. (This 50% cut is to the ICB running costs, not to the actual services they arrange.) The new structure might shift how commissioning decisions for children’s community health services, mental health support, and specialist SEND health services are planned and delivered across the wider area. We don’t know what this will look like, or how decisions will be made where some ICB functions are being shifted to regional teams or neighbourhood providers.
Changes to health systems – ESPCF event handout (PDF)
The Children’s Wellbeing and Schools Bill
The Children’s Wellbeing and Schools Bill is currently in the final stages of its passage through Parliament before it becomes an Act of Parliament, i.e. a new law. It is a wide-ranging reform package.
Children’s Wellbeing and Schools Bill – ESPCF event handout (PDF)
New SEND strategy in East Sussex
The local authority is beginning work on a new SEND strategy for East Sussex. A workshop was held last week with representatives from education, schools, health services, social care, children from the SEND ambassadors group, and parent carers from ESPCF. The workshop looked at where we are now – what’s going well that should be built on, and what needs to be better – and discussed priorities for the coming years, and what success would look like.
ESPCF are still in discussions with the local authority about our involvement in the development of the new strategy.
Key messages from our events
Here’s a snapshot of what we’ve been hearing from parent carers so far, including about the White Paper but also more widely:
- Masking, and more specifically how those children who appear ‘fine in school’ will be supported
- Concern about the proposal in the Schools White Paper, starting in 2029, to reassess children with education, health, and care plans (EHCPs) as they transition to the next phase of their education
- Punitive punishments in schools for difficulties relating to their SEND
- Support and services for children with physical disabilities
- Relationships between parent carers and schools
- Worries around support for SEND children with the primary to secondary school transition
- EHCP processes, for example mediation and the statutory duty for the local authority representatives at mediation meetings to have decision-making powers to resolve the mediation issues
- Accountability, and how to ensure it happens and what are the consequences when processes aren’t followed
Feedback about our events
We hope that those who came along found it valuable. We’ve had some lovely feedback, including:
“It was really informative and the relaxed atmosphere was lovely”
“It was good to be able to chat to people who listened and will try to help”
“Really good content and informative”
“Knowing other people out there in the same situation with their children”
We are grateful to the representatives from East Sussex County Council who came along to the sessions and spoke with parents and carers and answered questions. They commented on how powerful it was to have the opportunity to chat directly with parents and carers, one-on-one, hearing their stories and about some of the complexities in their lives and situations.
Parents and carers also asked for more opportunities for question-and-answer sessions with staff from the local authority, and this is definitely something we’d all like to do. Watch this space!